For a while now, the Star Empire had been harassed by pirates attacking ships along the eastern borders. The Star Empire had responded by increasing patrols, but with little luck. When a patrol discovered a hidden listening post just outside Star Empire space, the High Command ordered a strike, in the hope of disrupting pirate activities. After the listening post was destroyed, an investigative team combed through the remains. Their findings were covered up by order of the Directorate, but the damage had already been done.

A week later, several border outposts went silent. The officials responsible covered it up to save their own necks, and inadvertently left the Star Empire unprepared for what was coming...

3144 CE
New Charon, edge of Star Empire space

Keisha hurried along the muddy street. She was late again. Her mother had been ill for weeks, but they couldn't afford medicine, so Keisha had devoted all her spare time to tend to her. Unfortunately, this had left her exhausted and she had found it hard to get up in the mornings.

Keisha was assigned to Plant 13, where she worked from 8 AM to 8 PM every day with only a 30 minute break. She had worked there for 7 years, since she has turned 15, just like all the other workers at the plant.

She hated the plant, she hated the work, she hated the constant quotas, and she especially hated that smug Overseer Tanner, who was in charge of the place. He was the son of a local official, and had gained his position through his fathers connections, not because of any great ability. He ruled by fear, like all Overseers.

As she entered the plant, she was met by the Overseer and two of his enforcers, all dressed in their black uniforms. As she had expected, the Overseer did not take her lateness well. His face was stern and cold, and it was obvious that he was angry.

"Worker 1120-7, you are late again," he said matter-of-factly. "This is the third time in a week." Keisha bowed her head, not daring to look at him.
"Apologies, Overseer. My mother..."
"...is irrelevant" the Overseer barked. Then he smiled cruelly. "As a result of your tardiness, you are being reassigned to Quarry 47."

Quarry 47. The place was infamous. Anyone who displeased the Overseers were sent there to die. It was run by an Overseer called Harper, a cruel man who enjoyed working his workers to death. If a work detachment failed to meet quotas, they were deprived of their meals until they met the quota. The hard work and the lack of sustenance meant that most that failed to meet quotas eventually starved to death.

Keisha looked up at the Overseer, and said pleadingly:
"Please, Overseer, I'll never be late again. My mother will die if I'm not there!" The Overseer shrugged.
"So what? If she dies, she was weak and deserved her fate."
Keisha was seized by a sudden rage. Before she could stop herself, she lashed out and hit the Overseer. Struck by the blow, he staggered before he was caught by one of the enforcers. The other enforcer raised his stun baton and struck Keisha across the face. Keisha fell to her knees, stunned both by the blow and the electric charge.

Overseer Tanner regained his composure. He looked coldly at Keisha.
"That was a mistake, Worker 1120-7. The penalty for striking an Overseer is death." He motioned to the enforcer, who had struck Keisha. "Give me your sidearm."

As the enforcer moved to withdraw his sidearm, klaxons began blaring. The Overseer and the enforcers, forgetting about Keisha, ran outside. As other workers began running past her, Keisha got up and followed them. Outside, they were all looking to the sky. As Keisha did the same, a cold shiver ran down her spine.

The sky was filled with clawed pods descending at terminal velocity, straight at them...

* * * * *

Governor Adrian Thornton looked with horror at the viewscreens. His entire defence grid had been knocked out in mere minutes by the invaders. He had never seen the spaceships now orbiting New Charon, nor heard them described. But whoever they were, they were certainly not pirates - their technology was far too advanced.

As he watched, the ships began launching thousands of drop pods. Here and there, ships fired a volley at some planetary target - most likely what defensive batteries existed. He turned and barked orders to assemble the troops and prepare to resist.

This was no simple attack. This was an invasion.

* * * * *

It soon became evident that some of the pods were headed their way, and those assembled outside - Keisha included - scattered and ran for safety. After reaching safety behind some crates, Keisha watched as several pods slowed and slammed into the ground just outside of the plant. She looked at the nearest one with a morbid fascination.

Its black and crimson paint was scorched by the rapid descent through the atmosphere, but still evident. Four large claws protruded from the sides. As she watched, they extended, lifting the body of the pod into the air, and revealed ten armoured figures. From what she could tell, they were humanoid, but fearsome masks obscured their faces. Their armour was black with crimson edging and covered in spikes, and they carried dangerous-looking blades and some sort of energy rifles.

As she watched, an enforcer rose from behind a crate on the other side of the entrance, and fired his sidearm at the figures. He only succeeded to getting their attention, and was rewarded with a blast from one of the rifles. Keisha watched as the enforcer was hit. The bolt hit the enforcer square in the chest and left a burning hole where his heart should have been. The enforcer dropped dead.

Fearing for her life, Keisha ducked behind the crates again. Her heart was racing. More shots were heard and Keisha - overtaken by curiosity - peered out between two crates. More enforcers had arrived and was now in a firefight with the invaders.
Suddenly, she saw a pair of enforcers appear on the roof above, carrying a heavy weapon. It took her only a few seconds to choose a side in the battle; she rose enough to be noticed and yelled:

"Look out, up there!" She pointed at the enforcers on the roof.

One of the invaders saw her, and swung his weapon to shoot her. As he did so, his gaze followed her arm and he saw the enforcers. He yelled something unintelligible. Another invader turned and they both fired a volley from their rifles. Crimson bolts of energy laced through the air, cutting down the enforcers on the roof. The invader who had seen her first yelled something and motioned for her to hide, which she promptly did.

More weapons fire followed. Apparently, more enforcers had arrived; she recognized the sound of their laser weapons. As she was deciding whether to risk another look, two of the invaders jumped over the crates and landed beside her. One of them moved to fire around the crates, while the other crouched next to her. Her heart beat so fast she felt her chest would explode. Then she heard it - a sound almost like the cry of a hawk. She looked up and her heart skipped a beat. A great nightblue bird of prey was descending fast. As it closed, she realized that it was an attack craft of some kind. She noticed the cannons on its wings as it let loose, firing a volley of crimson bolts at a target on the other side of the crate. The impact caused the crate she was hiding behind to skid, and Keisha was knocked out by the impact...

He began to walk towards her, and Keisha looked around for an escape route. She saw a hole in the canvas, and sat up. Immediately, the room began to swim before her eyes. A pair of hands grabbed her and gently guided her onto her back. As the room stopped spinning, she saw the doctor stand above her. He talked to her in a calming voice.

"I don't understand. What is ash?" It was evident that the doctor understood her as well as she understood him. He gently pressed down on her shoulder.

"Aszh, Busken-e. Aszh." Keisha was panicking now. She couldn't understand the doctor, she was surrounded by aliens, and she couldn't escape. She tried to rise again, causing another exclamation from the doctor. "Ne! Aszh, takeldera, aszh!" A voice, soft and deep - almost like a purr - interrupted.

"Mekasdenen, Dakan-e." A tall man, an alien like the doctor, had appeared next to them. He wore a dark-grey uniform with purple edging and a long black cloak. A curved blade hung by his left side, and a sidearm was strapped to his right leg. The doctor bowed.

Keisha studied the Commander. He was a handsome man, though his ashgrey skin and crimson eyes unnerved her. His smile seemed genuine, though; Keisha decided that she had little to lose by being truthful.

"You were injured during the fighting, and were brought here to recuperate."

"Injured?" Rahn nodded gently.

"A mild concussion, I am told, but needing of medical attention nonetheless." Keisha nodded. Then she asked the question that had been trying to get out since she woke up:

"Who are you?" Rahn smiled.

"Calandri." He hid a grin when he saw the puzzled expression of Keisha's face, and answered the unspoken question. "Your kind calls us Calandrians."

Calandrians. Keisha's heart skipped a beat. Even in the Star Empire, the reputation of the Calandrians was well known. They were said to be callous, cruel and downright evil. She closed her eyes and mumbled.

"Just my luck." The deep, soft voice of Rahn intruded on her thoughts.

"What do you mean?" Keisha opened her eyes and looked at him.

"I mean, when the moment of truth comes and I have to choose sides, I choose the Calandrians over my own people." She closed her eyes again. "I must be insane."

"And yet, had you not made that choice, we would not be having this conversation." His voice was almost...merry? Keisha looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

"When you were knocked out, the warriors beside you felt they owed it to you to ensure the best care for you. So they took you here." Keisha looked puzzled.

"Wait...they thought they owed me?" Keisha was flabbergasted. This went against everything she had learned about the Calandrians. Rahn nodded.

"Yes. The Buskadai teaches us that those who fight with us are as kin. You risked your life to warn them of impending danger. How could they not repay in kind?"

"The Buskadai?"

"The Way of the Warrior. It is the code by which Calandrian warriors conduct themselves." Keisha nodded. She had heard of such things - indeed, something similar was part of her heritage.

"Like Bushido." When Rahn looked puzzled, she explained: "Bushido is a similar code from an ancient culture on Earth. It teaches how warriors should act in all things. Is this Buskadai like that?" Rahn nodded and smiled.

"Exactly like that."

Keisha was about to inquire further, when she remembered her mother. She looked at Rahn.

"You said you owed me? Can I ask you a favour, then?" Rahn nodded, a suspicious look in his eyes. He obviously didn't trust her completely, Buskadai or no Buskadai. She continued. "My mother is very ill. Could one of your doctors take a look at her?" The suspicious look faded as Rahn smiled.

"Of course. Shall I have her brought here?" Keisha shook her head. She could imagine her mother´s reaction, if a pair of Calandrian warriors showed up in her house.

"No, I should go myself." Rahn nodded.

"Very well, I shall send a squad of warriors with you."

* * * * *

After getting clearance from the doctor - Keisha was feeling much better now - Rahn led Keisha outside. A squad of ten warriors was waiting beside a hover vehicle of some kind. In the distance, there were faint echoes of explosions and shooting. When she asked, Rahn informed her that they were still rooting out the last pockets of resistance.

At the hover vehicle, he dished out orders to the warriors. They seemed reluctant at first, but a few words from Rahn changed the mood completely. Keisha tried to listen in, but the only familiar word was Busken. Rahn introduced her to the leader of the warriors, a tall scarred Calandrian named Kaiden Raal. He greeted her in broken English, using the word Busken-e, like the doctor had before. Then Rahn left and Keisha and her escort boarded the hover vehicle.

The vehicle weaved gracefully through the streets, passing several partially ruined buildings. Keisha struck up a conversation with Raal, occasionally interrupted by the driver - pilot, in Keisha´s opinion - asking for directions.

"Kaiden?" The warrior nodded. "What does Busken-e mean?" Raal considered his words for a moment.

"Busken is ... we." He motioned as himself and the other warriors. "Busken-e means..." he struggled to find the words, "...honoured Busken." Keisha considered it.

"You are Busken, Keisha-e. You become warrior when you stand with other Buska."

"Buska?"

"We all Buska. You is Busken." Keisha considered it. Then it hit her. Busken was the singular, and Buska the plural. She nodded and smiled.

"I understand." Raal smiled. She thought he seemed much nicer when he smiled.

* * * * *

The hover vehicle stopped in front of her home. The warriors put on their helmets, and Keisha could hear Raal dishing out orders through a comm system. Three warriors left the vehicle; Raal followed with Keisha and the rest of the warriors after a short while. Keisha assumed the warriors had secured the street.

Keisha carefully opened the door, calling for her mother. A weak voice answered. Keisha and Raal - who had refused to allow her to enter alone - entered and found her mother in her bed, visibly shaken. Her anxiety didn't lessen when she saw the tall, helmeted warrior with the rifle and curved sword. Keisha smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry, Mother, he's with me."

"What is going on, Keisha? I've heard shooting for several hours now." Keisha explained everything. Her mother chided her for risking herself, but eventually agreed to go. Raal helped Keisha's mother to her feet - handing Keisha the rifle, a gesture Keisha appreciated greatly - and supported her as she walked to the hover vehicle. After retrieving his rifle - which Keisha happily returned - they all entered the vehicle and returned whence they came.

The doctors had tended to Keisha's mother, Mashiko. She had been ill at ease at first, but the doctor - Xarsu Tailuhr - had been very gentle and kind. He had found an interpreter, and had informed them that Mashiko suffered from a case of pneumonia, which was easily treated. He had given her a pill to swallow, and Mashiko was already breathing more easily.

Keisha had spent the night on a cot next to her mother. She woke when the soft purr of Rahn's voice whispered her name.

"Keisha." Keisha opened her eyes. Rahn smiled. "Come. Let your mother rest. The doctor will see to her well-being. I have need of you."

Keisha carefully rose and, after checking on Mashiko who was fast asleep, followed Rahn. He led her outside and into a building across the square. It was a former guard station, that Rahn was now using as his headquarters.

They entered his office and passed into the room behind it. When Keisha saw the bed, all her suspicions and fears flared for a second; then Rahn turned.

"Keisha, I need your help."
"What kind of help?" Rahn hesitated for a moment.
"We have...we have found something. We need a local to help document it, so I thought you might want to help."
"What is it?"
"Later. For now, I suggest you freshen up. There is a shower in the next room, and new clothes on the bed. If you need anything, I have placed a pair of warriors outside this room, who will be at your service." Keisha nodded.
"Thank you." Rahn smiled.
"I'll be in my office, when you are ready."

He left, closing the door behind him. Keisha peered into the next room. It was a standard bathroom, with a toilet and a shower. She bit back her fears, undressed and stepped into the shower, turning on the water. It felt marvellous.

She showered for twenty minutes before finally getting out. She put on the clothes on the bed, noticing it to be a dark-grey uniform with purple edging, similar to the one Rahn wore, but instead of having three blue triangles on the collar like his, her uniform had but a single blue triangle.

She looked in the mirror. She looked imposing in the uniform. She had never looked imposing before; she decided that she liked it.

She opened the door and stepped out. Rahn, Raal and three warriors turned; the look on their faces told her that they found her imposing as well. Rahn smiled.

"It looks like it was made for you."

* * * * *

They sat in the hover vehicle with Raal and his warriors, moving towards some unknown destination.

Keisha looked over at Rahn.

"Where are we going?" Rahn looked serious. Keisha thought he seemed reluctant, when he answered:
"Do you remember that I told you that we were rooting out the last pockets of resistance?" Keisha nodded. "Well, we finally captured the last one in this sector this morning. We found something disturbing there, and we need you there to bear witness."
"Where was this pocket located?"
"A place called Quarry 47."

* * * * *

The hover vehicle lurched to a halt in the mustering field in front of the quarry proper. Keisha followed Rahn when he stepped out.

A large group of Enforcers were gathered on the field, tied and forced unto their knees in uncomfortable positions. A number of warriors were guarding them, pushing them back down if they tried to keep up. Even with their helmets on, Keisha could tell that they were agitated. Keisha looked at Rahn.

"What's going on?"

Rahn didn't answer, a grim expression on his face. He led them past the Enforcers and down into the quarry.

As they descended, Keisha noticed a strange smell in the air. It was sweet but slighly disturbing somehow. Then they rounded a corner, coming into an open area hewn out of the rock. A cave opened up further ahead.

That's when Keisha realized what the smell was. She stared, dumbstruck. Then she turned away and vomited.

The open area was filled with decomposing bodies. More were being carried out of the cave by Calandrian warriors. Sometime during the attack, the Enforcers had executed all of the workers.

Keisha felt a hand on her shoulder. It was gentle. She finally stopped vomiting, and managed to utter a single word:

"Why?" Rahn's voice was a mixture of anger and revulsion, when he replied.
"Apparently, the man in charge decided to deprive us of the 'resources' held here." Keisha looked up at him, anger flaring in her eyes.
"Resources?! They were mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, daughters, sons; they were not 'resources'!"
"I am sorry." Rahn sighed. "I am sorry that I asked you to come here." Keisha shook her head.
"No, I needed to see this. Now I know I made the right choice two days ago!"

She straightened up and turned back around. Her stomach lurched again, but she kept it calm by sheer force of will. Then she looked at Rahn.

"Where is he?"

* * * * *

Overseer Harper was tied to a pole in the center of the quarry, guarded by several Calandran warriors. His face bore clear signs of having been beaten.

Keisha and her companions walked up to him, Rahn nodding to the warriors, who stepped aside. Raal grabbed Harper by the hair and pulled until his eyes was level with Keisha's. Harper focused. Keisha spit in his face. Harper smiled.

"So, you found my little 'gift', did you...traitor?" Keisha punched him, forcing his head to the side. When he turned his head, he was smiling wider. "You can hit me all you want, but I will be lauded for this when the Empire retakes the planet."

Keisha looked into his eyes. There was no remorse.

"This will never become known to the Empire. I will see to that. Do you understand me? All the Empire will find, are the decomposing bodies of you and your enforcers!" Harper smiled.

"And how will you do that, Worker 1120-7?" He smiled wider. "Yes, I know who you are, 1120-7. An hour later, and you would have been lying in that cave with the rest of the filth."

His head snapped to the side, as Keisha hit him again.

"The only filth here is you." She looked at Rahn. "What do you intend to do to Harper and his enforcers?"

Rahn and Raal spoke for a moment, then Rahn unclipped his sidearm and handed it to Keisha.

"Their fate is in your hands." Keisha took the pistol. When she looked back at Harper, her eyes were cold with hatred.

"Bring him to the mustering field."

* * * * *

Harper was being held down, Raal holding his hair, forcing him to watch. Rahn looked at Keisha.

"Are you sure? I can do it, if you wish." Keisha shook her head.
"I need to do this. I need to honour the dead." Rahn nodded.
"As you wish. Ready is 'goto', aim is 'tsel', and fire is 'strel'."

Keisha nodded.

The first ten Enforcers had been tied to wooden poles at one end of the field. Five warriors were standing in front of each Enforcer. Keisha smiled sardonically at Harper, who was struggling in vain against the firm grip of Raal.

Then Keisha's voice rang out across the field, loud and clear.

"Goto!"

The warriors raised their rifles.

"Tsel!"

The warriors aimed at the struggling Enforcers.

"Strel!"

The warriors fired, the Enforcers dying in hails of plasma fire.

* * * * *

After the executions were over, Keisha turned to Harper. The Overseer was still struggling, his eyes shining with fear and hatred.

"Any last words, Overseer?" Her voice was dripping with malice. Harper stared at her.
"You bitch! You will pay for this!"

Keisha drew the pistol and aimed it at Harper's forehead.

"Not the words I would have chosen."

Raal let go of Harper's head. A single shot rang out. Harpers body - his head evaporated by the plasma shot - fell forward and hit the ground with a thump. Keisha handed Rahn the pistol.

Keisha woke to the sound of engines outside. She looked around. She was lying in Rahn's bedroom, still dressed in the dark-grey uniform.

As she rose from the bed, the door opened. Rahn smiled when he saw her up and about.

”You are up. Good. How are you feeling?” Keisha smiled.
”Better.” Another vehicle moved past the building. ”What's going on?” Rahn looked serious.
”We are leaving.”

* * * * *

”Leaving?!” Keisha shook her head in disbelief. ”You can't leave! What about the workers?!”

Rahn avoided her glance. Keisha felt the anger well up in her.

“You're leaving them behind? Then what was all this for?!”
“This was only meant as a punitive expedition. We were not supposed to take anyone on board.”
“I don't care! You can't free us from the Overseers and then turn around and leave us at their mercy!”

Rahn turned around.

“I have no choice. I am not authorized to...”
“I don't care!” Keisha was yelling now. “What good is the Buskadai, if you only follow it when you please? You are just as bad as they are!”

With that, she turned around and stormed out of the room, practically knocking over Raal who had been listening from the other side of the door.

He watched her go, then looked at Rahn.

“Orders, Chusan?” Rah did not turn.
“Ready my ship; and notify the Admiral that I am coming on board.”

* * * * *

“Absolutely not! Are you mad?!”

Admiral Katarina Fell looked surprised and annoyed all at once; an impressive ability that Rahn had long admired.

“How can we justify freeing the slaves, only to leave them at the mercy of their former masters?”
“It is not our concern!”
“It became our concern when we freed them.”

Fell stared at Rahn for several seconds. Finally, she said.

“There is no dissuading you?” Rahn shook his head.
“No.”
“Fine.” Fell shrugged resignedly. “I will back you if needed. What is our next course of action?”

Rahn shrugged.

“Now, we need to persuade the Emperor.” Fell shook her head.
“Ancestors, help me.”

* * * * *

“You want to do what?!”

Emperor Magan Rakun stared at the image of Rahn that flickered before him.

“I want to move the ....” Rakun raised his hand.
“I heard you the first time. Where do you intend to put them?”
“The planet Charan, Your Majesty.” Rahn transmitted the coordinates. “It is newly discovered and ready for colonization. Instead of a few thousand colonists coming in every year, we can move in an entire population right away.” Rakun shook his head.
“You can not simply put down a hundred thousand colonists. Without food and equipment, they will all starve.”
“I understand that, Your Majesty, but these people are used to doing a lot with very little. The cost will be less than normally anticipated, and they will start earning back the investment within a few years.”

Rakun rolled his eyes in resignment. Only Rahn could get an idea like that.

“Fine. I suppose a hundred thousand hard working subjects could prove useful.”
“Eh...”
“There are more than a hundred thousand?” Rahn nodded.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“How many more?”
“Just over six million.”

Rakun stared at Rahn for nearly a minute. Moving a hundred thousand civilians was a feat in itself. Moving six million would be a monumental task.

Finally he nodded, albeit somewhat reluctantly.

“Fine. But this had better not turn sour, Rahn.”
“It will not, Your Majesty.”
“I will hold you to that.” He looked at Fell, who was standing behind Rahn. “I will divert the necessary forces to you. But do not linger; they are needed elsewhere.” Fell saluted.
“Understood, Your Majesty.”

Keisha was sitting on the roof of Rahn's headquarters. From here, she had a view of most of the city. Her mind raced.

She felt betrayed by Rahn. He had given them hope; now, it seemed to have been a fool's hope.

But was it really his fault? He was just a soldier, and if his superiors didn't approve, he couldn't do anything.

“Bullshit,” she said to no-one, “he shouldn't have given us hope when he knew he couldn't deliver.”

She was startled when Rahn replied from behind.

“You are correct.” He came up and sat down next to her. “I did give you hope knowing that I could not deliver. Luckily,” he sighed deeply, as if relieved, “the Emperor has decided that he needs colonists.”

Keisha looked at him. She felt a sting of hope.

“How many?”
“Most of the population, actually. Barring undesirables, of course.” Keisha felt her hope disappear again.
“Undesirables...you mean the young, old and infirm.” Rahn smiled.
“No, I mean overseers, enforcers and collaborators. We do not need nor desire that kind of people. Besides,” he mused, “leaving behind the young, old and infirm tends to damage morale.”

Keisha was beside herself with joy – that is, until the cynic in her realized that there had to be a catch.

“What's the price?” Rahn smiled. He had been waiting for this moment.
“Anyone who agrees to come will become Imperial citizens and will be expected to work on improving their new home.”
“Not a problem.”
“Good. However,” his face became serious, "there is one more condition that, if not fulfilled, will prevent the transfer."

Keisha had a bad feeling about this, but a tiny voice in the back of her mind reminded her that he had not lied to her, or tried to take advantage of her, so far.

"What is it?"
"The transfer is contingent on you joining the Imperial Security Service."
"What?!" Keisha was flabbergasted. "Why?!"
"We could use someone like you. You are determined and capable. Granted," he grinned, "you have a problem with authority, and tend to be a little too opinionated, not to mention headstrong. But, that is often an asset when serving in KOM."
"KOM?"
"The Imperial Security Service; Kaelan Orgaz Maraz."

Keisha considered it. On one hand, she didn't like the idea of essentially becoming an Enforcer. On the other hand, if it meant freedom for her people - and that she'd get to work with Rahn and Raal - she could hardly turn it down. Finally, she nodded.

The evacuation - or transfer, as the Calandrians called it - began at dawn the next day. Though wary, no-one of the working-class had refused the offer to leave New Charon.

Keisha was there as the first group boarded the shuttles that would take them into space. Like most Calandrian vessels, it looked intimidating; an elongated body that swept into a point, with a pair of wings strutting from the back section of it. It was held in a dull red. Almost the colour of dried blood, Keisha thought.

She was wearing the dark-grey uniform again, but this time she felt she had earned it. Though she was not officially KOM yet, the Calandrians had all been notified that she was part of the organization. As a result, most of them avoided her.

Except of course Rahn, and Raal and his men. Raal was assigned to KOM as well, and did not fear them as others did.

Her fellow New Charons didn't know what the uniform meant, however. Rumour had spread that she was - at least partly - responsible for the Calandrians offering them a new life, and many came over to thank her. She was a little embarrassed about the attention, but smiled and made small talk. Her presence made everyone feel a little better about leaving for an uncertain future.

She was there at every launch that day, even eating her lunch - a Calandrian food bar called Hyro, that Raal brought her when he stopped by - while standing there. Rahn and Raal joined her at various times, but they had other duties to attend to, so they didn't stay for long. Whenever there was a lull, she returned to the guard station to rest.

Finally, as the last shuttle lifted off, Rahn returned.

"Tired?" Keisha nodded. She was quite weary by now. "Come on, I want to show you something."
"What?"
"Come on."

Rahn led Keisha over to a smaller shuttle. Interestingly, it was small and boxy and not at all intimidating.

"Where are we going?" Rahn pointed to the sky.
"Up there."

* * * * *

Keisha's stomach was churning, as the shuttle rose. The surface below became smaller and smaller, until suddenly they broke through the atmosphere. Only now did she realize the extent of the invasion.

Dozens of ships orbited New Charon. Most of them were clearly troop transports, but about a dozen stood out; sporting a body, a long connector and a command center in front, and a pair of wings, they reminded her of great birds of prey, preparing to swoop down at their prey. They were certainly intimidating.

Even so, one stood out among them. Longer, less bird-like, but no less intimidating, the vessel dwarfed the surrounding ships.

Rahn leaned in.

"She is beautiful, isn't she." Keisha nodded. "She is called the Hada'Toch."
"What does that mean?" Rahn smiled a wicked smile.
"Glorious Death."

"I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve." - Bilbo Baggins
From madness comes wisdom, and from wisdom comes power.
"I'm convinced you're secretly a British Spy" - Mir